A face from a time I'd rather forget
by Holz090
Summary: Carla bumps into Howard.


**So ignore the awful title, my mind went blank. **

**For some reason Carla and Howard's relationship has always interested me, so I thought I'd write this by some way of exploration. **

* * *

Carla turned the key in the lock of Peter's front door and sighed for no particular reason. Perhaps it was becoming a habit, like when you find yourself coughing long after the virus has passed. Stepping down the small step in front of the door, she swung her bag nonchalantly as she pulled it onto her shoulder, before almost falling over in shock as she suddenly became aware of the man standing mere inches from her.

She pulled her hand up to her heart in shock, taking a subconscious step backwards in a bid to create a more comfortable distance. In a tone she hoped didn't betray her unease too much, she tried to laugh. "Oh, gosh, you nearly gave me heart attack!"

It was only when the man smiled warmly back at her in an apologetic manner that it registered who he was.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you", he spoke softly, and hearing his voice out of context unnerved Carla slightly. She hoped he wouldn't recognise her, but by the mix of confusion and unease on his face she realised this was sadly unlikely.

"It's Carla, isn't it?" He gestured, his tone awkward and unsure.

Carla silently cursed those support group meetings she'd stupidly gone to, regretted the words of jumbled self-pity she knew were about to come back to haunt her. She wondered how much Peter had told him about what had happened.

"You um, you certainly have a good memory for names!" She tried to joke, brushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear like a shy child.

Howard was clearly floored, unsure of how to react or what to say. Carla was torn between her desire to put the poor man out of his misery and her equally strong need to get away from the situation as quickly as possible.

"Oh well, y'know." He smiled, "It kind of comes with the territory". He paused for a moment, looking round as though waiting for someone to come round the corner and explain everything. Accepting that they weren't going to, he opened his mouth to speak. "I was after Peter?"

"Oh, yeah, he's um, he's just gone to take Simon to school". Carla wasn't sure who was the most awkward at that moment, him or her.

"Oh, right, ok".

There was another uncomfortable pause.

"He should be back in a bit, there's a café round the corner if you wanna wait?" She offered, hoping he'd take the bait and save her from this agonizing situation. Peter clearly hadn't told him about them being together, and she had no desire to update him.

"Ok, yeah… thanks." The sheer look of confusion on his face was almost adorable as he turned on his heel and slowly walked away. Carla sighed, she could practically hear the cogs turning, and somehow she felt that after everything he'd done for her she probably owed him an explanation. Before she could talk herself out of it, she called after him. "Howard? Look, I don't have to be at work for another half an hour, I'll come with you if you want?"

Howard smiled and gave a grateful nod as she caught up with him.

"So I'm guessing it must've been a bit weird, me coming out of the flat like that?" Carla asked, nodding a thank you to Anna as she put two coffees down on the table in front of them.

"That obvious, huh?" Howard smiled.

"…And I also gather Peter hadn't mentioned it? Not that he would, I mean…"

"Well, I knew he and Leanne had split up and that he was with someone but… I didn't make the connection, no."

Carla smiled awkwardly, cradling her mug as she drummed her fingers against the side of it, unsure of how much this man already knew. Had he known at that meeting that this Very Good Friend that had saved her from her suicide bid had been Peter? They'd hardly been discreet about their friendship, the way he'd made a beeline for her almost before the final person had finished talking, or the way she'd starred right at him the entire way through her cringe worthy speech. 'Oh, God…' she thought, 'does he remember what I said?'

"Well, why would you?" She eventually answered, more of a statement than a question.

"It'd odd," Howard continued, "When Peter turned up at mine that night… y'know when they said he'd…" His sentence trailed off as it seemed to dawn on him who the man Peter had spent the whole evening threatening to kill was. "… Well he kept saying about how Frank had… What he'd done and…"

Carla looked up from her coffee. "You can say the word, Howard".

"Yeah…Um… Well what I'm trying to say is I probably should have made the connection then. I mean it was obvious from that meeting you knew each other".

Carla grinned slightly, both relieved and embarrassed that at least that part of their relationship didn't need explaining. "Yeah we um… Well I may as well be honest; he was the friend I said about".

Howard nodded. "I sort of guessed... Which is why I probably should've realised that night, but..."

Carla shifted her position in her chair, suddenly aware of her paranoia that Leanne could walk in at any moment. "What did you want Peter for, anyway?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Oh um, just wanted to touch base with him, what with the custody trial coming up and everything."

"Right, yeah."

She suddenly felt uncomfortable again – no doubt he was sat there judging her. After all, from what Peter had said he'd sung Leanne's praises and talked him out of leaving her several times in the past, and here she was, the homewrecker that caused all the problems: The reason, not that he'd admit it, why Howard had felt the need to check up on him after all the chaos she'd caused in his life. Carla looked at her watch, disappointed to find they'd barely been there for 10 minutes. She'd already told him she had half an hour, so any excuse about work would be obvious.

"So anyway, how are you, Carla?" Howards question startled her slightly as his soothing tone cut through the silence.

She grinned. When the bloke who runs the support group you used to go to asks if you're ok, his real question is pretty clear. "Oh well, y'know".

"Just because I've not seen you around for a while" Howard added.

"No um…" She sighed, not knowing how best to answer his question. "I'm ok."

"Good. Well if you ever need to talk, you know where we are".

Carla smiled, knowing full well there was no way she could ever go back to the group even if she wanted to. It had been a stupid idea in the first place, and now he knew about her and Peter, it would just be far too awkward. Besides, she didn't need an alcohol support group.

"Thanks." She put the mug she'd been clutching down on the table and grabbed her bag from the floor to indicate she was about to leave. "Well, I'll leave you to finish your coffee in peace. Peter should be back any minute, so."

Howard clearly got the hint. "Ok, thanks. It was nice to see you again, Carla."

Carla merely smiled as she turned to walk out.

As she headed towards the factory, relieved to finally be out of the situation, she caught sight of Peter across the road, walking towards the bookies. She wasn't sure why she didn't call out to him, or why she found herself quickening her pace and pretending not to see him.


End file.
